Monday, 5 December 2016

The best metal band from Toronto is back with their third album and the first since their fantastic 2010 opus The Principal Extinction. While I have certain reservations concerning this new record, it’s still one of 2016’s best moments and, in the end, was far from disappointing.

Based on the psychedelic and progressive tendencies of their previous work, I thought the trio were gonna keep exploring this path and go full bonkers. I mean, there’s still similar moments here like the glorious “Untame Iniquity” or “Cult of the Meteor” but I think the focus is elsewhere, it's perhaps a bit more rooted in metal than ever. The tracks are mostly shorter and punchier but they still include lot of epic heavy metal,possibly more than ever before. My reservations are purely personal since I really like when bands go all out and release meandering (in the best sense possible) pieces and it’s not what this album is about. Oh well, there’s still the new Cultes des Ghoules for crazy black/heavy metal if I want to hear such a thing! I guess that I considered this new record as a sort of stagnation but after a while, I kept hearing new subtle and intriguing details. It’s just much more dense and compact and is more surprising than you’d expect from a band with this aesthetic.

The production while still on the lo-fi side is a bit better than it was before. Regardless, I don’t want a thoroughly clean Demontage album like I wouldn’t want a Nuclear Blast produced Darkthrone album. The gruff style works well for them and is an essential part of their identity. They’re obscure minstrels from an old, mystic aura where metal was still embryonic and genres were blurry.

The musicianship is also one of the aspects that put Demontage over their peers, The Lout is a riff machine and an inspired vocalist who channels the chaotic evil gods of old and the Abominable Reverend pounds the drums like a raging madman. There’s no disposable moments here and the album’s flow is precise and balanced as they alternate between mid-paced insanity and fast-paced attacks with ease and experience. The guitars are the clear highlights of this full length, they do so much while keeping things neat and their sound is fully devoid of any gimmick and unnecessary fluff. Demontage is a band relying on extremely addictive leads played by a single guitarist who just hammers riffs after riffs like it's nothing. Furthermore, the additional keys here and there certainly add a certain epic flair but they were able to convey this grandiose feel with their usual metal lineup. Not unlike the masters of metal themselves, Manilla Road.

From the thrash attack of the appropriately named “Mad Thrasher” to the Dark Quarterer-esque instrumental conclusion of “Into the Fire”, Fire of Iniquity is a tour-de-force. It’s a challenging record successful at mixing a lot of traditional metal styles in one potent formula. The first wave black metal meets the Greek scene and pure heavy metal is just something that barely anyone else is playing nowadays. Demontage are just as good as Zemial and Agatus, two comparable bands and influences. At times, they could be seen as a crazier and more elaborate Venom as they’re full of spite but also quite thoughtful and intelligent. We have the best of both worlds. Metal is at its finest when there’s no pretension involved but also when primitive posturing is removed from the equation. One thing is certain though, Demontage still freaking rules.

Friday, 28 October 2016

Price:
$4.50 for a 127g bag. It was pricy but eh, the temptation was too
strong to resist. The bag was bought at Bulk Barn alongside gummy
bears, peanuts M&Ms, BBQ bits & bites, Oh Henry pieces and
Reese pieces. Fuck off, it's Halloween and I wanted to make myself
happy again.
Packaging/extra information : the bag is
gorgeous. It looks like the Sriracha bottle with the green cork and
the red body. If you're a fan of the popular hot sauce like I am,
you'll notice the bag immediatly.

Texture:
Well, it's popcorn and like it's written on the packaging, the color
is natural and there's tiny bits of Sriracha flakes on the pop corn.
It's high quality stuff.

Taste: If
you have a cold, eat those. As it was expected, they're pretty damn
spicy. I currently have the sniffles while I'm writing this review
but I just can't stop eating them. Precise and identifiable, the
Sriracha taste is in the spotlight.

8/10

Great but
a bit too pricy. You could possibly make them yourself too but ehhhh,
probably not worth the hassle.

Saturday, 15 October 2016

"Wicked men. Servants of Sauron. They are called to Mordor. The Dark One is gathering all armies to him. It won't be long now. He will soon be ready."

Barrow Wight is a band in constant evolution, maybe because except for Andrew (bass/vocals), their lineup has been grandly unstable or maybe that’s just what Middle-Earth metal deserves and Saruman keeps killing their drummers and guitarists. Anyhow, on their debut album released on the great Australian label Heavy Chains, the Canadian trio unleashed their strongest slab of material yet.

Even if this has the best production they ever had, Knights in Saurons Service (an homage to Kiss?) is still a primitive affair as far as heavy metal is concerned. The love for proto extreme metal is clearly in the center of those compositions but there’s an obvious depth found on this record. This can be heard in the “intro” mixing the atmosphere of Lord of the Rings with this cryptic and apocalyptic aura, there’s more than meets the eye on here.

The core of their sound are those super catchy short tracks like “No Sleep Till Gondor” or “The Cult”. They’re bangers full of the punk fueled heavy metal aggression of Venom, Motorhead and even Amebix. This approach combined with the lore of Tolkien works so well. They’re the exact opposite of Summoning but this universe is large enough for both sides of the spectrum to exist.

In my review for their 2014 EP, I said that there was a “certain will to push the boundaries of their agenda” and I was right. They’re starting to experiment with some slower tempos (“Grond” or the excellent “The Palantir”) and it pays off. There’s also some unorthodox moments like the The Doors keyboard break on the title track, this was an insane surprise. To round off their experimentation, there’s subtle nods to 80s goth rock here and there and this just adds to the experience. I think they’re not done experimenting with their blend of proto black metal and heavy metal, they’re still not daring enough!

Andrew’s vocals are blackened croaks and they often lack in power but they really fit the “don’t fuck with me” attitude of his bass licks (check out “Dwimmerlaik”!) No frills guitar riffs, thunderous drums and groovy headbanging is what you’ll get here. It’s not perfect yet but it’s really damn fun and that’s one of the reasons we listen to metal, right? They always give a good show too, they’re charismatic Canadian Hobbit bards who are at their most powerful on stage. Like “Grond” (a battering ram made to look like a wolf head by the Orcs”), the album shatters everything. After Bolt Thrower, it’s pretty much what the Uruk-hai would listen to to motivate themselves.

Friday, 14 October 2016

Originality in heavy metal is often hard to reach or achieve without losing the essential traits of the classic genre. To distinguish themselves from the masses, the artists must deliver a distinctive sound within the confines of the style, bands like Borrowed Time, Demon Bitch or even Darkthrone with The Underground Resistance managed to reinvigorate the genre. Ezra Brooks, with their debut release, successfully wrote fresh and exciting heavy metal made for connoisseurs.

The arcane heavy metal path is one I've been following for a while now. It's often mixed with doom and sword or sorcery (see Atlantean Kodex or The Gates of Slumber) or it's simply slower than your usual trad heavy metal. The main characteristic of this abstract sub genre would be the mix of high octane riffs and an occult and elegant atmosphere. The sole album of the aforementioned Borrowed Time or Howie Bentley’s Cauldron Born and Briton Rites are good examples of arcane trad metal. In Solitude’s Sister wouldn’t be a bad choice either. Emotional weight through uncompromising heavy metal riffing, basically. I believe that's what Ezra Brooks plays too.

Following the Canadian path created by Tales of Medusa (the last track is a cover of this mysterious band), Shawn Vincent wrote subtle but engaging metal with hooks and depth. Only joined by Jan Loncik, his companion in Hrom (power/speed/heavy), who handled the guitar solos, this is a one-man band project but with an interesting narrative.

I recently reviewed Lascaille Shroud's latest album and while we're in completely different territories musically, the science fiction story-line involving the character Ezra Brooks has the similar feel. This pulpy sci fi/fantasy setting works really well with the style, it’s fun without being saccharine and smart without being pretentious. There’s a cerebral edge to Ezra Brooks’ music but it’s never turning into a “progressive” mess.

The production is great and everything sounds good, I dig the guitar tone a lot. Nevertheless, there's still a definite will to make this sound timeless or unpolished and this what makes me really dig the approach. Vincent's voice is quite buried underneath the mix, he's not the most talented vocalist but the material is written and played with this in mind. The most important aspect of music is that you must know your strengths and weaknesses. His strength is writing tight epic riffs without unnecessary garnishes.

The material’s main inspiration is perhaps the ballsy sound of USPM but there’s nods to other scenes such as the early 80s German power scene. Considering Vincent is a bassist in his other two bands, the instrument certainly has a place of choice here but it’s not overbearing or anything. The drums could had been heavier and faster though but overall, it doesn’t feel like it’s only one dude at all. The longest track “Weilding the Mirrored Gauntlet (Escape The Labyrinth)” also has some synths elements adding a certain sci fi flair to this epic number without any cheese whatsoever.

2016 is a year with great heavy metal on the lo-fi side of the spectrum (check out Scalare, Barrow Wight or Angel Sword) and Ezra Brooks (the name of a Bourbon Whiskey brand!) definitely brings something interesting to the table. I’m pretty excited to hear the future releases.

Tuesday, 4 October 2016

After the impressive one-song extended play The Cavern released two years ago, Inter Arma doesn’t have anything to prove to anyone. They’re one of the best american metal bands of their generation and their third full length will only solidify their status as a genre bending and untamable epic beast.

The first noticeable aspects of an album are always the artwork and the title and there’s a clear newfound identity found in the cover art of Paradise Gallows. Compared to Sundown or Sky Burial, it’s full of colours and could almost fit an indie rock band but the scene illustrated is bleak and ultimately fits the sound of Inter Arma. Compared to its artistic rendition, this album is far from being a shipwreck. It’s probably more the large rocky island in the background which is known for leading ships to their demise. Just like the crew of a well-managed ship, the songs on Paradise Gallows are fairly diverse but they learned to work well together to maintain the deck and ride the sea like no one else.

While somewhat sunnier than Sky Burial and overall perhaps softer, it’s still pretty heavy at times. The big Southern melting pot is the basis of their identity. They mix this depressive but warm and dirty sludge sound with healthy doses of black/death metal recalling the elusive Bölzer full of cavernous vocals but they keep things mid-paced or hellishly slow. Songs like the nine minutes “Transfiguration” bring forth the gloomy atmosphere while never losing the focus on tight and riff based metal. I guess we could say that their approach seems all over the place, right?

Maybe... but wait, there’s more! The combination of the massive Neurosis-like riffs with hints of funeral doom/death works quite well. The integration of psychedelic elements also feels natural (listen to the droney but catchy “The Summer Drones”) and there’s a slight nautical aspect to their compositions. It feels like you’re on the Atlantic, near the state of Virginia while listening to the darkest Nick Cave albums but your buddy suddenly plays his Eyehategod mix-tape on his boombox.

“Potomac” (speaking of said nautical feel) is this gorgeous instrumental song full of clean proggy guitar leads and piano and it’s a soft interlude before we’re served two extended heavy numbers.They’re all over the place with their styles of riffing and melodies but they’re surprisingly able to have a clear and solid direction while battling the intense waves made by the aggressive kraken.

Mike Paparo’s presence is outstanding in its richness and diversity. From the harsh yet deep black metal growls to the Mastodon-esque rough delivery of “Violent Constellations”, he’s a gifted metal singer. He’s also great at other styles including the tragically romantic vocals neo-folk of acoustic closer “Where the Earth Meets the Sky” and this sort of entrancing quasi spoken word (check out “Primordial Wounds”).

The guitars of Dalton and Russell range from megalodonian to intricate and psychedelic. This album is long (71 minutes) but it’s always inventive and spectacular. Their weaving of calmness and bludgeoning intensity has reached its peak on Paradise Gallows and the evolution of their sound since their 2010 debut has been an enjoyable process to follow. This is a great album.

Sunday, 2 October 2016

To end
this warm month of September, I had to choose between three
interesting gigs happening on the same evening. It wasn't an easy
decision to make since I'm a big fan of Toronto's Demontage who were
opening for DBC at the Piranha Bar and the Red Bull Academy drone gig
seemed pretty attractive as well. In the end, I went with the style of music
closer to my earth, doom metal. After a long commute to the south
west of Montréal, I arrived in time to see the first band on the
bill.

Chronolith
are a fairly new local band and based on their singer, they play some
form of sludge. I guess they do but they're not your usual
run-of-the-mill sludge band. The guitar is fairly inventive and
sometimes inflicts ethnic influenced leads with a progressive
precision and the bass was quite loud with a clean and heavy sound.
They're not the dirty, heroin-addicted style of sludge, they belong
to the psychedelic school that Kylesa used to teach at. On some of
their songs, they had a violinist who added some richness to their
sound and it wasn't too dissimilar from what SubRosa are offering us.
The singer was pretty generic and didn't offer much as far as stage
presence is concerned but maybe he wasn't feeling well that night.
Anyhow, I liked their compositions and I'm looking forward to their
studio releases.

ZAUM: The duo
from Moncton are about to release their second full length (once
again on Sweden's I Hate Records) and they decided to do a short two
dates Québec trip before going overseas to play a massive European
tour. The metropolis was to first to host those two bearded gentlemen
and they didn't disappoint. They opened with "Influence of the
Magi" the first side of Eidolon, their new album, an extended
twenty minutes track full of twists and turns before playing two
older tracks. Zaum consists of drummer Chris Lewis and bassist/singer
Kyle McDons and those two guys are able to convey an impressive sense
of mighty power with their interesting formula. McDons is using a
wide array of pedals and his abilities exceed the comprehension of
mere mortals such as myself. He's also a sound engineer so he knows
exactly what to do to make his project sound great. Decorated with
their numerous personalized candles, the stage was blown to bits by
the subtle yet captivating red lights emanating from underneath
Lewis' drums and the whole setting really managed to give the
necessary aura their middle-eastern influenced approach to doom metal
needs. Thunderous, simple but not lo-fi, Zaum are all in and they
always deliver the slow, tasteful goods.

Mountain
Dust are perhaps Montréal's current best rock band and they closed
the evening. I had to miss their album release gig so I really wanted
to see them play their new songs live and it wasn’t disappointing.
The quartet plays heavy rock with an amalgam of influences from
diverse eras. You get the lap steel from the blues or country scene,
the keys from the Deep Purple and the presence of guitarist/singer
Brendan Mainville can recall everything from the grunge era to the
early proto hard rock days of the 60s. Speaking of this decade, the
band did a fantastic super heavy cover of The Doors’ “Waiting For
the Sun”. The dudes are all coming from a metal or hardcore
background so there’s this added heaviness to their vintage rock
and it’s highly fun to hear and watch. It’s authentic without
sounding like a pale copy of your dad’s record collection

Saturday, 1 October 2016

Now one of the biggest metal/rock bands on
the planet, Opeth’s career has taken an important detour with
Heritage
in 2011. Legions of fans and detractors alike are asking themselves
what will be the sound explored on this new album. Let’s not burn
the sorceress before hearing her plea, shall we?

The Swedish giant is a band in constant
evolution and unlike their peer, In Flames, they managed to make the
transition into softer territories in a good way. They were already
showing signs of their evolution with their gorgeous 2003 opus
Damnation
but with Heritage,
they went all in, and it displeased and divided their audience. While
they will not win back the fans who wants them to be truly metal
again with this new album, it might be viewed more favorably. Anyway,
I don’t really care about what other people say about Opeth, I care
only about what Mikael Åkerfeldt is doing since he’s been the
leader of my favorite band since I discovered them in high school.

I will not let the suspense go on much
longer, yes Sorceress is
a good album but I do think Opeth never (and probably never will)
released a bad album. I do have some reservations towards the album
though. It’s clearly not as good as I wanted it to be. Theband
has always been somewhat disjointed as it’s usually the case with
bands with long song structures. Nevertheless, it’s never been as
apparent and obvious as it is here except for Heritage
which is possibly their weakest album. Maybe
it’s because of the eleven-tracks format (the most of any Opeth
album) or the fact that the songs are a bit shorter and more self
contained.

Opeth had the tendency to be meandering
and includes a wide array of styles within the same songs. Sure,
there’s exceptions found in their past career with songs like
“Harvest” or “To Bid You Farewell”, but Sorceress
feels much more like an amalgam of different styles than any other of
their other albums (extreme metal excluded, no they’re not coming
back to their death metal blend...). You
have the folky Jethro Tull-influenced ballad “Will o the Wisp” or
the heavy metal/hard rock of “Chrysalis” and the different
elements are a bit less melded together than before. Furthermore,
“The Seventh Sojourn” is even a track similar to the Fertile
Crescent sound, and it works as a sort of smooth interlude similar to
the non-metal tracks found on Melechesh’s excellent albums The
Epigenesis
and Enki.
Oh man speaking of that, an Opeth/Melechesh tour would be killer.
Make this happen, Nuclear Blast.

The final important negative point would be
the abrupt end of the album. It
ends with a short, one minute outro after the hard rocking “Era”
and it was a bit like if the waiter removed your plate from the table
while you’re eating it. It was a sudden
and unexpected finale to an otherwise great album. The introduction
right before the title track works though. It’s classical guitars
with some ethereal female spoken word, and it sets the tone in a good
way. It’s not unlike “Coil” from Watershed
but it’s not a “complete”
song.

Still, I reckon my criticisms are pretty
small. I’ve learned to disregard those aspects after four or five
spins and it remains a collection of great songs. Regardless, the
album isn’t as condensed as their previous one. The cohesion is
lacking and the flow isn’t perfect. Still, it’s not as incoherent
as Heritage and
doesn’t have as many disposable moments. I’d say that “Sorceress
2” is the only truly weak point found on this record. It’s a
boring four-minute acoustic ballad with unremarkable vocal lines.
It’s the total opposite of
the aforementioned and super great folky “Wisp” and it has to be
one of the weakest tracks Opeth ever composed.

While Pale
Communion was pretty much Opeth
without the extreme metal elements,
Sorceress is less limited and
feels it could be another transitional album. Nevertheless, I do
think Opeth never did a real transitional album except Watershed.
They’re just creating landscapes based on a large amalgam of
approaches and themes, and it turned out their 2008 record was the
last one with death metal components. Still, the tracks without
Mikael’s harsh vocals like “Porcelain Heart” or “Burden”
were signs of their future incarnation. I can’t help but think that
Sorceress could
be interpreted as a new watershed for the Swedes. It’s hard what to
predict what they’ll do next, but based on the lyrics of “Era”,
it could be the conclusion of their current manifestation. It’s the
“end of an era, we’ll start a new...” so maybe they’ll go
back to their prog death sound and tour with Amorphis like it’s
2002 all over again?!

As far as
their evolution is concerned, Sorceress
is still Opeth exploring
progressive rock in their own way but it probably has their heavier
moments since the album that gave us “Lotus Eater” and “Heir
Apparent.” To answer my own Trump reference in the title, yes this
is (probably??) a metal album ,and the heavy parts possess a new
sense of perspective. They added some stoner flavors to their
newfound metallic formula and it’s heavier than Pale
Communion when it actually
decides to be. The title track released as the first single is a good
example of Sorceress’
metallic identity. While this is still Opeth, it’s a widely
different album even if there’s their usual tropes.

Compared to the previous album, the jazz
influence are gone and the combination of heavy metal, progressive
rock and folk took their rightful place. We already had heavy
rock parts on Heritage
(“Slither”, a song dedicated to Dio) but those parts are boosted
on this album. This side of the band’s identity took time to appear
and knowing how much Mikael is a lover of 70s and 80s heavy metal and
hard rock, it was simply a matter of time. He’s a massive Michael
Schenker fan and it’s obvious that UFO, Uriah Heep and the NWOBHM
scene were huge influences on the compositions. Those classic rock
influences were included into the idiosyncratic sound of Opeth, they
never were and never will be a cheap throwback or a “vintage rock”
band. They’re innovative while looking at the rightful musical
identities of the past.

Concerning the individual performances of
this opus, Martín Méndez’ bass is a shining beacon. He’s been
playing a role within the band’s sound recently and it’s a good
thing; the dude is on fire and deserves more credit and praise.
Another key element: The keys of Joakim Svalberg (his second album
with the band) are thunderous and give Opeth their well-deserved rich
sound. The chemistry between the keys and the guitars is certainly
something to behold.

About the leader himself, he’s always
been one of my favorite singers but he has been improving his clean
vocals for a while now and probably offers his best performance ever
as a clean singer on this 12th
album. He shines on the rougher moments, and he’s been expanding
his pallet for the softer parts. While I’ll admit I do miss the
growls at times, even if they wouldn’t fit here, he’s masterful
on Sorceress. He’s
soulful, charismatic and sensual on the heavy bits, and sensible and
mystic during the calm instants. My favorite Mikael moment of the
album has to be the memorable chorus of “The Wilde Flowers”.

Production-wise, I dig the guitar tones,
they have this old school feel but with strong doom sensibilities.
The riffs on tracks like “Chrysalis” or the truly sole epic they
did “Strange Brew” (the most varied track of the album) are
killer and absolutely well written. The acoustic guitars are back in
full force too and their inclusion on tracks like “A Fleeting
Glance” are pertinent. Fredrik Åkesson and Åkerfeldt are expert
guitarists, this is known. Their guitar parts range from being subtle
to over the top in a matter of instant (listen to the soloing of “The
Wilde Flowers” or the Blackwater
Park/Ghost Reveries-esque calm
parts in some songs). Nonetheless, they’re a bit too mechanical
during the “stoner” moments (such as the debut of “Era”) but
overall, the two guitarists keep things interesting, uncomplicated
and tidy. It’s yet another strong slab of strong and creative
musicianship.

To
conclude, the new influences ranging from stoner rock to heavy metal
made this a fresh record without being overly modern or distasteful.
That’s a feat in itself in this saturated musical age full of bands
trying to mix everything together in the hopes of creating something
unusual or redesigned. Twenty-one years after their debut album, the
Swedish monolithic entity still has the upper hand.

It may be the most chaotic album they ever
did and the direction they took isn’t quite clear to me. Are they
coming back to a more metallic sound to please the fans? Anyhow, the
mixture of elements is working. It almost sounds like the perfect
marriage of Ghost Reveries,
Watershed
and Pale Communion
into one potent magical spell but it has the main downfall of
Heritage,
the incoherence of its tracklist.

Make Opeth Great Again?
They’ve always been great and they’ll always be the best band.
Metal or not. Is this album even metal? Who cares? It’s Opeth, and
they’re awesome.

Master Yoda

Welcome to the magickal realm

This blog explores the depths of metal! I tend to concentrate on the slower categories of the genre but I often like to write about other stuff than doom. My reviews are also posted on the Metal Archives where I'm a moderator since 2012.

I also write some live reports from time to time since Montréal hosts a lot of interesting gigs.

Contact: antoine1490@gmail.com

I speak English and French fluently if you want to contact me in either languages. / Je parle Anglais et Français, vous pouvez m'écrire dans les deux langues.FACEBOOK PAGE